England V West Indies Test Match Series 2020

(13-07-2020 00:00 )William H Bonney Wrote:  By team:
West Indies 14 reviews, 7 decisions changed
England 8 reviews, 2 decisions changed

If there was no DRS for this match would West Indies still have won?

I think Stokes has to take the blame for that loss, if we had blow first then with the helpful conditions on day 1 and 2 I think we would have had the west Indies out for less than 150 in there first inning and we could have gone on and won, I think it shows he's not ready for the captaincy yet,

England seem to make the same mistakes, no matter who is captain.

Some positives can be taken from England's defeat, Zac Crawley is learning fast at this level & if Root is adamant that he wants to bat at No.4 Crawley has the class to bat at 3. Burns, Sibley & Denly all bat at a similar tempo, Crawley has shown that he can go through the gears, Denly has had longer than most, but hasn't quite cracked it.
Archer has also reminded us how good he can be with his 2nd innings spells, Stokes managed him & the other bowlers well, apart from under bowling himself.

It was a good toss to lose. It wouldn't have just been Stokes who decided to bat first, it was probably a management choice. Root would have made the same option.

The team seemed under prepared. No excess because they had the same preparation time as the opposition.

What I can't understand is why Butler is world class at limited over cricket, yet struggles to keep his place in an international test team.

I agree Charlemagne, there's no excuses, they had the same preparation time as West Indies, but you have to now think whether the WI could now have a team capable of matching that awesome side of the 70's & 80's for dominance and power.
I think we only lost because of certain decisions we took at certain points in the match & still think there are some positives to take forward. but probably the decision to leave ou Broad probably was one that maybe backfired a little. I'd like to think Stokes does have a captaincy future at some point.
Just how we will line up for 2nd Test remains to be seen, but certainly a little juggling in batting order is needed but should we name an unchanged side?
Also, I do still think we need to find either a settled top 3 or 4 to the order, OR find a settled opening pair, whichever is the best option, I do think we chop and change the opening pair around too much and if we can work towards having a settled opening pair for a good while it might help get confidence in batting ability running back through the team.

(13-07-2020 21:12 )Charlemagne Wrote:  What I can't understand is why Butler is world class at limited over cricket, yet struggles to keep his place in an international test team.

I saw a lot of him when he was at Somerset and he's never going to make it in the longer format of the game, he struggled to keep focused and concentrate for a whole day , it's why he always makes silly mistakes , everyone down Taunton knew it and told him it's why he left us as he got told he was never going to play county championship

The last time that we had a world class all rounder was in the days of Ian Botham. And he was a disastarious captain.

There's a danger that Stokes could be compaired to Botham's position but it's worth persisting with him as Joe Root's deputy.

I would imagine that Butler will be given the whole series, at least. It's not what I would do. As a Yorkshireman I believe that Bairstow has more of a batting game for test cricket than Butler, who as Winsaw has mentioned, has never made it at first class level. he has a modest record with very few centuries. Bairstow has a slight edge over Butler with his keeping, but he has to show that he leave his ODI technique behind & play in a more orthodox manner as he has done in the past & get back in the Test side as a batsman. So for me Foakes has to be given an extended run in the side arguably the best keeper around & as many Test match centuries as Butler. His batting at First Class level has faltered a little since he was left out of the Test side, but I would be confident his form would return if he is given a decent chance. he has the pedigree & temperament to succeed. Remember he was man of the series on his debut tour in Sri Lanka.

Joe Denly has been dropped from the 13 man squad for the 2nd Test at Old Trafford. Bowlers Anderson & Wood are rested, with Curran & Un-capped Sussex All-Rounder Ollie Robinson added.
Root returns as captain, & it has been confirmed that Crawley will move up to 3, with Root at 4.
An interesting pick in Robinson, who started his career at Yorkshire at the time that his step-farther Paul Farbrace was assistant coach. He was release due to disciplinary issues. A hard hitting batsman, but bowling is his strongest suite , not an out & out quick but a tall bowler in the mold of Craig Overton.